Assorted Cookies

March 29, 2013

Assorted Cookies

It just occurred to me earlier this week that I have not seen any hot cross buns here.  I know we get bombarded with the supermarket version straight after Christmas back in Australia so it feels a little quiet here in the lead up to Easter.  Back home it is all about the Easter eggs, hot cross buns, roasting a leg of lamb on Easter Sunday, going camping or heading up to the coast.  But we don’t even get a long weekend here.

But I have been baking these delicious Hot Cross Buns.  If you haven’t made your own then I highly recommend it.  You will not buy better ones.  These are light and fluffy and highly addictive.  We make a chocolate version too which is very popular with the kids.  My plan for Easter Sunday morning, after church, is to invite some friends and neighbours over for an Easter egg hunt followed by freshly baked hot cross buns and coffee.  I’m still undecided about roasting a leg of lamb though.  Most of them are from Australia surprisingly and cost a pretty penny.

Last weekend we headed to the snow for a bit of skiing.  I decided to take some biscuits with us to enjoy with our hot chocolate.  The kids usually request chocolate chip cookies but I enjoy a bit more variety.  So I’ve taken to making a big batch of plain cookies and then adding different toppings for a box of assorted cookies.  The addition of cornflour in these cookies gives the cookie a nice short bite.

Elliott was my little helper in the kitchen and he carefully topped his cookies with chocolate chips (not all the chocolate chips made it to the cookies) and a sprinkle of coconut.  I just raided the pantry and topped the remaining cookies with whole pecans and made indents and filled with Dulce de Leche.  But use these cookies as a base for jam drops, dotty cookies (topped with smarties or m&m’s), any chopped or whole nuts or a sprinkle of cinnamon sugar.  One batch can be made into a variety of cookies to please everyone and it gives the little chefs some freedom to experiment.  A fun holiday activity.

Assorted Cookies

assorted cookies

250g unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup caster sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 egg yolk
2 cups plain flour
1/4 cup cornflour

Preheat oven to 180 degrees C.  Line 2 baking trays with baking paper.

Mix together the butter and sugar until light, fluffy and pale.  Add the vanilla and egg yolk and beat in.  Sift over the flour and cornflour and mix until just combined.

Roll into small balls and place on baking tray.  Flatten the cookies slightly with a lightly floured fork then decorate with what ever takes your fancy.

I made half the cookies and then mixed in a handful of desiccated coconut to the remaining cookie dough before shaping into rounds.  It means the cookie dough is a little dryer but the taste is delicious.

Bake for 10 – 12 minutes or until lightly golden.

Posted in Afternoon Tea, Cookies, Kids In The Kitchen | 2 Comments

Frozen Strawberry Milkshakes

March 21, 2013

Frozen Strawberry Milkshake

I adore The River Cottage books and TV shows and I just recently purchased this tome to add to my collection.  What makes this book unique is all the background information on ingredients.  For instance, the first chapter is on flour so it talks about wheat – soft wheat and hard wheat.  Then the processes to make different flours and what flours are used for bread or cakes and biscuits etc.  I have been reading the book cover to cover and learning a lot.

The River Cottage Family Cookbook

This is a fantastic book for older kids as most of the recipes are straight forward and approachable for them to cook themselves.  Some require an adult but they usually come with a warning next to the recipe title ‘warning – boiling sugar!’  The food photographed in the book aren’t picture perfect but refreshingly realistic.  They were all cooked by families for families and I love their approach.

The older children cooked many dishes entirely on their own – although one of us was never far away.  The younger children ‘helped’ us, doing what they could (and what they felt like doing). As we cooked, phones rang, babies crawled about, and family life carried on regardless.  We did it like this because we imagine you’ll be cooking the same way …

The River Cottage Family Cookbook

Frozen Strawberry Milkshake

My two older kids have been enjoying this book as much as me because there are some fun projects like creating your own ice cream maker, building a campfire for outdoor cooking, growing your own potatoes and hosting a pancake race.

Frozen Strawberry Milkshake

We have been cooking quite a bit from this book lately but the latest recipe was this Frozen Strawberry Milkshake.  The kids wanted to make this recipe first but I hadn’t yet bought a blender here in the US.  Today Elliott and I did a bit of shopping after preschool and we picked up a glass blender and a huge bag of frozen strawberries ready for a delicious after school milkshake.

Frozen Strawberry Milkshake

Tilly got busy and roughly measured out the ingredients then blitzed them all up into a thick, icy thick shake.  Yum!  The only improvement according to the kids is that next time we have straws.  Apparently milkshakes just taste better with a straw.

Frozen Strawberry Milkshake

frozen strawberry milkshakes

(slight adaptation of a recipe from ‘The River Cottage Family Cookbook’)

2 cups frozen strawberries that have been hulled
1 tablespoon castor sugar
1 1/4 cups milk

Place all the ingredients in a glass blender and whiz until smooth, thick and pink.

Posted in Afternoon Tea, Drinks, Kids In The Kitchen | 2 Comments

Lemon And Herb Spaghetti

March 20, 2013

Lemon and Herb Spaghetti

My kids have always been hit or miss when it comes to serving pasta and it has been a long time since I served it for dinner.  In the last couple of weeks we have had it twice and most of the kids have been really excited about it and begged for leftovers in their school lunchbox.  One child in particular just wants rice every single night but I trust it is a phase.

BBQ Fish

I love pasta dishes that aren’t weighed down in a heavy sauce and this pasta is wonderfully zingy and light.  We had it with a couple of small whole fish that we cooked on the BBQ.  Levi was in charge of the fish and he stuffed them with lemon slices, parsley, dill and a little knob of butter.  He then wrapped them in foil, squeezed over lemon juice and sealed the edges.  I then popped them on the BBQ and cooked them on indirect heat for 13 minutes. A really easy way to cook a whole fish and the flavour is so delicate and clean.

BBQ Fish

What I love about this meal is that it really is fast food.  Everything was cooked well within half an hour and it was so easy to make.  Once the spaghetti is on the boil then you get started with sauteing the leeks and garlic, which only takes 5 minutes.  Then chop the herbs, rinse the capers and zest the lemon.  Finally just toss it all together.  I divided the fish and pasta amongst all the plates and everyone helped themselves to salad.  All the three older kids scored the meal 10/10.  Elliott just ate the fish and a bite of tomato and a bite of spaghetti so his vote doesn’t count!

Lemon and Herb Spaghetti

lemon and herb spaghetti

400g spaghetti
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 leeks, rinsed and white part sliced
2 garlic cloves, crushed
2 tablespoons salted capers, rinsed and drained
small bunch of chopped parsley
small bunch of chopped chives
small handful of chopped dill
zest and juice of 1 lemon
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Cook the spaghetti, as per instructions on the packet, until al dente.

Meanwhile in a large pan gently fry the leeks and garlic in the olive oil until soft then take off the heat.  When the spaghetti is cook, drain, then tip into the pan with the leeks.  Add the capers, most of the herbs (reserve a good handful to sprinkle over the finished pasta), lemon zest and juice.  Toss everything together and season to taste.  Add a little extra virgin olive oil or extra lemon juice if needed.  Serve in a big bowl and scatter over the remaining herbs.

Posted in Cheap and Cheerful, Family Dinner, Lunch, Uncategorized, Vegetarian | 4 Comments

One Pot Spiced Apple Cake

March 14, 2013

One Pot Spiced Apple Cake

Cake recipes that only require one bowl and a bit of mixing by hand are gold.  They are usually so straight forward that a kid could make them.  This one is easy but it does require a little knife work with slicing the apples, some heat to melt the butter but then all you need is a spoon to mix.

This is an Annabel Langbein recipe except I don’t add the raisins and walnuts that are in the original as my kids tend to pick those out.  It should be noted that not all of my kids do that.  Matilda prides herself on the fact that she love nuts and raisins.  The younger two love to eat sultanas and raisins on their own but not cooked into things.  I trust they will grow out of this but in the meantime, as I make this cake for school lunches, it is raisin and nut free and just as yummy.

One Pot Spiced Apple Cake

This is a fabulous cake for a school lunch box.  My kids adore it and Levi asks for an extra big slice for sharing as his friends love it too. It is moist and keeps well for several days plus it freezes well.  It doesn’t crumble all over the kids when they eat it and above all, it is delicious. I guarantee that no one could resist this cake when still warm from the oven.  The house is filled with the scent of cinnamon and apple.  Just perfect served as a dessert when it is still warm with some cream or custard.  This recipe is a keeper.

One Pot Spiced Apple Cake

one pot spiced apple cake

(slightly adapted from a recipe by Annabel Langbein from her book ‘Simple Pleasures’)

25og unsalted butter
3-4 apples, peeled, cored and thinly sliced
2 cups caster sugar
2 eggs, lightly beaten
2 1/2 cups plain flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 teaspoons baking soda
3 teaspoons ground cinnamon

Preheat the oven to 150 degrees C (300 degrees F). Grease and line the side of a 26cm round cake tin with baking paper.

In a large pot (large enough to hold all the cake batter) add the butter and melt over a low heat.  Remove the pot from the heat and add the sliced apples and sugar.  Mix together then mix in the eggs.  Sift over the dry ingredients and stir until everything is combined smoothly.

Pour the batter into the prepared cake tin and bake until golden and cooked which is about 1 hour and 20 minutes.  If the cake is browning too quickly then cover with some foil.  Test the cake with a skewer to make sure it is cooked in the center.  I have found that I’ve had to leave the cake to cook for a further 20 minutes, covered with foil, until it is cooked.  The center of the cake should bounce back when pressed.

Leave to cool for 15 minutes before taking out of the tin.

Posted in Afternoon Tea, Baking, Cakes, School Lunches | 10 Comments

Spicy BBQ Chicken Drumsticks

March 13, 2013

Spicy BBQ Chicken Drumsticks

Our BBQ has been getting a good workout now the weather is warming up.  This is a very easy spice mix that I use for chicken drumsticks and the kids all love it.  The ‘spicy’ bit isn’t so much heat just a good mix of different spices and a hint of chilli.  But the chilli can be completely omitted from the recipe if you don’t want any heat.

Ideally, with most marinades and spice rubs, you want to leave everything to marinate for a couple of hours but I’m not always that well organised and everyone is still very happy with the results.

This is an easy family dinner with some cobs of corn thrown on the BBQ and a green salad. I also like to buy a loaf of Turkish bread or focaccia and slice in half length-ways, drizzle over a little olive oil and toast on the both sides on the BBQ.  I slice a clove of garlic in half and rub over the toasted bread lightly for a bit of flavour then sprinkle over some salt and chopped parsley.

Organic chicken drumsticks are incredibly affordable here.  I’ve been buying them from Trader Joe’s or Costco and it costs about $6 to get enough for our family.  So it is a good option if there are a lot of people to feed without breaking the budget.

Spicy BBQ Chicken Drumsticks

spicy bbq chicken drumsticks

1 kg chicken drumsticks
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 cloves of garlic, crushed
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon mustard powder
1/4 ground chilli
1 teaspoon salt
some freshly ground black pepper
lime wedges, for serving

Mix everything together and leave to marinate for a couple of hours – if time allows!

Preheat the BBQ to medium/hot.  I cook the chicken using indirect heat so I set the side burners to medium/hot and turn off the center burner.  Then I arrange the chicken in the middle of BBQ and put the lid down.  After 15 minutes I turn the chicken over, and give the chicken a brush with leftover marinade,  then put the lid down.  After 15 minutes, check to see if the chicken is cooked through.  It may need more time but once it is cooked put the chicken on the warming rack to rest with the lid down and BBQ off.  If you don’t have a warming rack then just put the chicken on a plate and over with foil and leave to rest for 5-10 minutes before serving.  Serve with some lime wedges.

Posted in BBQ, Cheap and Cheerful, Family Dinner, Feeding A Crowd | 6 Comments

Pistachio Meringues With Rosewater Cream

March 12, 2013

Pistachio Meringues With Rosewater Cream

The weekends here lately have been so gorgeous.  Clear, sunny skies, trees are blossoming  and everyone seems to be out and about enjoying the warm change.  Our kids spent the majority of the weekend in the pool and by the time their heads hit the pillow at night they are sleeping heavily.  Which made this morning just even harder with the start of daylight savings.  We had to drag the younger two out of bed to get to school on time and the older two weren’t happy they didn’t get as much reading time.  They are always up early and reading.

I’m sure it won’t take long at all to adjust and it makes me happy to think we have a long stretch ahead of us of warm weather.

Pistachio Meringues With Rosewater Cream

Over the weekend I made a simple meringue dessert.  Meringues are such a good dessert idea to keep filed away as they require just 3 basic ingredients – eggs, caster sugar and vanilla extract.  Then you can add to that base, if you want, by folding through nuts, shredded coconut or grated dark chocolate.

For these meringues I folded through some finely chopped pistachios which looked so pretty.  I figured I may as well go with the flavours of the Middle East and add a splash of rosewater to the whipped cream.   I only put in one dessert spoon of sugar into the cream as the raspberries were so sweet (I am always astounded at how berries here are just sweeter and cheaper then what I’m used to).  Fruit that is a little tart always works best with meringues and pavlovas but these raspberries were too hard to resist.  A good scattering of pomegranate seeds would have made this perfect.

It was a simple idea and resulted in a beautiful dessert.  Now I can’t stop thinking about making a tagine this week.

Pistachio Meringues With Rosewater Cream

 pistachio meringues with rosewater cream

2 egg whites
1/2 cup caster sugar
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
4 tablespoons finely chopped pistachios, plus a little extra for sprinkling

rosewater cream

300ml cream
2 tablespoons caster sugar
1 – 2 teaspoons rosewater

to serve

raspberries or strawberries
finely chopped pistachios

Preheat the oven to 150 degrees C (300 degrees F).  Line a baking tray with baking paper.

Beat the egg whites in a mixer until stiff peaks form.  Keep the mixer going and gradually start adding the sugar, one spoonful at a time.  Add the vanilla extract and continue to beat until the mixture is glossy and stiff.  Gently fold through the chopped pistachios. Just do about 3 folds with a spatula so the mixture is streaked with the nuts.  You don’t want them completely mixed in.  Dollop 6 meringues onto the baking tray and sprinkle over the extra chopped pistachios.

Bake for 45 minutes then turn the oven off but leave the door slightly ajar and leave the meringues to cool completely.

Whisk the cream until it just starts to thicken.  Add the sugar and rosewater and continue to whisk until soft peaks just start to form.  Taste and add extra rosewater if need be.  I was reserved in how much I used as I just wanted a hint of rosewater.

To serve, place a meringue on each plate and top with a good dollop of the rosewater cream.  Scatter over some raspberries or strawberries and if you can, some pomegranate seeds.  Then sprinkle over some chopped pistachios.

This is also a good dessert to feed if you have a big gathering.  Mound up the meringues on a big platter then everyone can help themselves to the bowl of cream, fruit and extra pistachios.

Posted in Baking, Dessert, Entertaining, Feeding A Crowd, Uncategorized | 4 Comments

Roast Vegetable Tarte Tatin

March 8, 2013

Roast Vegetable Tarte Tatin

I’m a little embarrassed to admit that this is yet another recipe inspired from watching My Kitchen Rules, but doesn’t it look so delicious?

‘Tarte Tatin’ sounds so technical and fiddly but it isn’t.  The basic idea is to roast any vegetables that appeal to you and then simmer them in a sugar/vinegar syrup and place them in the base of a pie tin (any size that you like).  I made the pastry by hand as I have no food processor here and it a very good pastry.  Flaky and light and it could be used in many different recipes.  The pastry just needs to rolled out and cut to fit the pie dish then it all goes into the oven until the pastry is golden and crisp.  The highlight of this dish was the pastry – it is worth giving it a go.

The vegetables I roasted were beetroot, eggplant, red onion, capsicum and cherry tomatoes.  Once the tart rested for five minutes I inverted it onto a big plate and topped with a handful of rocket and crumbled feta.  Full of flavour.

You could make individual tart tatins for a more formal occasion or do what I did and make a couple of big ones, slice them up and serve them with a few salads for everyone to help themselves to.

Roast Vegetable Tarte Tatin

roast vegetable tarte tatin

(adapted from a recipe by Kerrie and Craig from My Kitchen Rules)

a few fresh thyme leaves
a good handful of rocket leaves
crumbled feta

pastry

300g plain flour
200g butter
120g sour cream

roast vegetables

1 red onion, peeled and quarted
2 Lebanese eggplant, cut into 1cm slices
4 garlic cloves, peeled, halved
2 small beetroots, peeled, cut into 2cm pieces
1 small red capsicum, cut into 2cm pieces
12 cherry tomatoes
30ml olive oil
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

syrup

125ml (1/2 cup) verjuice
55g (1/4 cup) caster sugar
125ml (1/4 cup) water
¼ cup lemon juice
1 tbs Vino Cotto

(I understand that verjuice and vino cotto aren’t so readily available.  A simple syrup made with 1/4 cup of brown sugar and 1/2 cup of balsamic vinegar, white wine vinegar or white balsamic vinegar and possibly a splash of white wine reduced down a little would work.)

Put the flour and butter for the pastry in a food processor and mix until it looks like breadcrumbs or just rub the butter into the flour by hand. Add the sour cream and process or mix by hand until mixture just comes together – be careful to not overmix or the pastry will be tough. Shape the dough into a disc and wrap in plastic wrap then leave to rest in fridge for at least half an hour.

Preheat oven to 180 degrees C (355 degrees F).

Toss all the prepared vegetables with the oil and season.  Arrange on a baking dish (preferably one that can be put onto a stove top) and bake for 30 minutes or until cooked.

For the syrup, cook the verjuice, sugar, water and lemon juice in a saucepan over medium heat and stir until the sugar dissolves.  Cook for a further 5 minutes or until reduced to about 1/3 of a cup. Remove from heat and stir in Vino Cotto.

Once vegetables are cooked, place the baking dish over a medium heat on the stove top.  (If you don’t have a baking dish that can go onto direct heat then just transfer the vegetables to a wide fry pan).  Pour over the syrup and toss it all together gently, you don’t want to mush the vegetables, until the syrup has almost evaporated.  It is ideal to have this mixture cooled to room temperature so the pastry can be really crisp and flaky but I made my tarts whilst the veggies were still quite hot and the result was still delicious.

Lightly grease your chosen pie tins with a little olive oil and divide the roast vegetables amongst the  tins.  Drizzle over any remaining syrup in the pan on top of the vegetables.  Sprinkle over the thyme leaves.

Remove the pastry from the fridge and roll between 2 sheets of baking paper until 3mm thick.  Cut out the pastry to just fit inside the pie tins and place the pastry over the veggies and gently tuck into the sides.  Bake for 25 – 30 minutes or until the pastry is golden and crispy.  Leave it to stand for 5 minutes before inverting onto a big plate.

Top with a handful of rocket leaves with a little extra drizzle of extra virgin olive oil then crumble over some feta.

Posted in Entertaining, Family Dinner, Lunch, Tarts, Uncategorized, Vegetarian | Leave a comment

Baharat BBQ Steaks With Sweet Potato Mash And Mint Yoghurt Sauce

March 6, 2013

BBQ

My goodness it has been a long time since I had a steak on the BBQ.  We bought some sirloin steaks on the weekend and I couldn’t wait to get home and fire up our new Weber.  I knew exactly what I was going to cook.

Joel set me up so I could catch up on some Australian TV and I have lost quite of few hours of my evenings lately watching My Kitchen Rules and The Block: All Stars.  I can’t decide what I like watching more – stressed out cooking frenzy or stressed out reno frenzy.  I’d prefer both without the stress.

On My Kitchen Rules the gorgeous Melbourne ladies, Angela and Melina, made Baharat Beef with Sweet Potato Mash and Mint Yoghurt Sauce.  Gosh it sounded good and now I’ve given it a whirl I can verify it tastes fantastic.  The mash alone is worth making again and again.  I want to serve it with a sticky Asian style braised lamb shank or BBQ chicken thighs marinated in soy, ginger, garlic, lime, lemongrass and oil. Or just stick with the recipe and replace the steak for some lamb cutlets, chops or backstrap – the flavours just would work perfectly with lamb.  But our steaks were beautifully cooked to medium/rare and I’ll be making this recipe again and again.

Baharat BBQ Steak With Sweet Potato Mash And Mint Yoghurt Sauce

baharat bbq steaks with sweet potato mash and mint yoghurt sauce

(adapted from a recipe from Angela and Melina from My Kitchen Rules)

baharat beef 

4 x 150g scotch fillet steaks  (I used sirloin steaks)

roast tomatoes

500g cherry vine tomatoes
2 tsp olive oil
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

spice marinade

2 tbs olive oil
1 tbs sweet paprika
3 tsp ground black pepper
3 tsp ground cumin
2 tsp ground coriander
2 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp ground cloves
1 tsp ground cardamom
½ tsp ground star anise
¼ tsp ground nutmeg

mint yoghurt sauce
250g (1 cup) Greek yoghurt
juice of 1 lime
1 garlic clove
1 cup fresh mint leaves (plus extra for garnish)
pinch cayenne pepper
pinch ground cumin
pinch sweet paprika

sweet potato mash

1kg sweet potatoes, peeled, sliced thickly
1 lime
¼ cup finely chopped coriander
2 tbs sweet chilli sauce
1 tbs soy sauce
1 tbs butter

Mix all the spices together for the spice marinade and rub all over the steaks.  Cover and leave in the fridge to marinade for several hours or overnight.  Bring the meat to room temperature right before cooking.

Process all the ingredients for the mint yoghurt sauce.  Season to taste.

Preheat oven to 200 degrees C (395 degrees F).

To make the mash place the sweet potato in a baking dish.  Zest the limes and put aside.  Slice the lime in half and place, cut side down, on the top of the sweet potatoes.  Cover the dish with foil and bake for 40 minutes or until the sweet potatoes are soft and cooked through.  Carefully remove the foil and squeeze the limes over the sweet potatoes and mash until smooth. Add the reserved lime zest and remaining ingredients and give it all a quick mash together.

Put the cherry tomatoes on a tray and drizzle with the oil.  Season and roast for 15-20 minutes.

Preheat the BBQ to hot.  Season the steaks with salt and drizzle a little oil over each steak (I just try and pat a little oil on the steak as I don’t want to brush off any of the lovely spices).  Cook the steak for 2-3 minutes each side and let it rest for 10 minutes on a warm plate covered with foil.  The resting time is worth it.

Place some mashed sweet potato on each plate then the steaks.  Top with some roasted tomatoes and a good drizzle of the mint yoghurt sauce and garnish with the extra mint leaves.  So, so scrumptious.

Posted in BBQ, Family Dinner, Uncategorized | 10 Comments

Apple Breakfast Bruschetta

March 5, 2013

Apple Breakfast Bruschetta

I saw this sweet breakfast bruschetta being made on TV awhile ago by a former contestant on Masterchef, Debra Sederlan, and I bookmarked the recipe with the plan to make it that very weekend.  Well it didn’t happen then but eventually I got around to it and it was everything I hoped it would be.  Decadent, flavoursome and a wholesome start to a weekend.

Apple Breakfast Bruschetta

Debra recommends a fresh sourdough loaf from a local bakery and it is worth it.  All the flavours together balance – the sourness of the bread, tartness from the apples, sweetness from the dates, sweetness from the walnut, honey syrup and the creaminess from the orange ricotta.  Everything just ties together so beautifully and it feels like a luxurious breakfast.

Apple Breakfast Bruschetta

The surprise for me was that my two older kids were in raptures with it too!  They couldn’t finish it all as it is a little rich but they loved it.  We had a fruit platter of honeydew and blueberries too which freshened up our breakfast.  This is something you would make for a special breakfast as it requires a bit of time but the results are indeed worth it.

Apple Breakfast Bruschetta

apple breakfast bruschetta

(slightly adapted from a recipe by Debra Sederlan)

sourdough loaf
olive oil

apple mix

3 Granny Smith apples, sliced into wedges (reserve a quarter for serving)
zest and juice of 1 lemon
50 g butter
12 fresh dates, pitted and torn in half
2 teaspoons honey (optional)

walnut honey syrup

100g walnuts
125g unsalted butter
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1/4 cup lemon juice
100g honey

ricotta mix

250g fresh ricotta
zest of 1 orange
1 dessertspoon fresh orange juice

Preheat oven to 160 degrees C (320 degree F).

Place the apple wedges into a large frying pan with the 50g butter, zest and juice from lemon.  Cook on high heat until the butter starts to foam then turn down the heat to a simmer. Cook for 15 minutes, or until the apple has softened slightly but still hold their shape, turning the apples gently from time to time.

Add the dates and the honey and cook for a few more minutes.

Meanwhile, place the walnuts on an oven tray and bake for 5-8 minutes until just toasted.  You don’t want the walnuts to darken or they will taste bitter.  Roughly chop the walnuts.

For the syrup place the honey, butter and lemon juice into a small saucepan and stir over a high heat until it reaches a rolling boil then leave it bubble for 2 -3 minutes.  Turn down the heat to a simmer and tip in the chopped walnuts.  Give it a bit of a whirl then take off the heat.

Mix together the ricotta, orange zest and juice.

Slice the sourdough into chunky diagonal slices and drizzle over a little olive oil.  Cook on a hot griddle until the bread is nicely toasted with griddle marks.  (Admittedly, I just skipped this step as I was pushed for time and just sliced the bread and popped the pieces in the toaster which was perfectly fine but I’m sure the results would have been better if I put in the extra effort – next time!)

To serve, place the toasted sourdough on each plate, thickly spread over the orange ricotta, top with cooked apple slices and a couple of dates.  Quickly bring the walnut syrup back to the boil for a few seconds then drizzle this over the top of the bruschetta.  Top with a few slices of the reserved fresh apple slices then stand back and admire how beautiful it all looks on the plate!

Posted in Breakfast, Uncategorized | 2 Comments

Carrot Soup

March 2, 2013

Carrot Soup

There are so many variations of carrot soup – creamy, spicy, curried, caramelised etc.  I would say this is a creamy carrot soup which is more appealing to my kids but it wouldn’t be my favourite version.  I knew that  Essie had enjoyed it for her school lunch when she came home with orange splats of dried soup down her dress.  A good look.

Levi wasn’t so enthralled but he is more a minestrone type of guy.  Fortunately my kids will eat most soups if I give them something yummy to dunk in.  So even if they are only eating what gets dunked onto their bread it is still a small serve of veggies.

Carrot Soup

This recipe has a good kilo of carrots, and as I bought a massive bag of gorgeously inexpensive organic carrots earlier this week, I was looking for ways to use them up.  And it certainly is a very easy recipe to make as, unlike other soups I’ve made, everything is thrown in together and then left to simmer.  No frying off the onions at all which I’m not so sure about but I followed the recipe and the end result was tasty.  The only thing I changed was the quantity of sugar added.  The carrots were already sweet and I don’t think they need a tablespoon of sugar.  I added a teaspoon and it was more than enough.  But be sure to season well with salt and a good grind of pepper.

If you have kids that are confident and sensible with a knife then this is something they could do all by themselves.  They will need supervision with the slicing and pureeing the hot soup.

I’ve had 3 kids home on different days this week with a bit of sickness.  Elliott is the only one home today as he is still coughing but he is on the mend and we got out into some sunshine and went for a scooter ride. One thing I never knew until I moved here is that the seasons start and finish at different times than in Australia.  Spring doesn’t start on the 1st of March like I had assumed!  I have to wait until the 20th March but trees have starting flowering so I know it is on the way.

Spring On The Way

carrot soup

(adapted from Stephane Reynaud’s ’365 Good Reasons To Sit Down To Eat’)

1 kg carrots
2 onions
1 teaspoon sugar
1 tablespoon ground cumin
200ml cream
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Peel the carrots and slice into rounds.  Peel and slice the onions.  Put into a large pot along with the sugar, cumin and then add twice their volume of water.  Bring to the boil then turn down to a simmer, covered, for 30 minutes.

Blitz up the soup with a stick blender, add the cream and season to taste.  Simmer for a further 15 minutes.

Posted in Cheap and Cheerful, Family Dinner, Kids In The Kitchen, Lunch, Soup, Vegetarian | 5 Comments